Two very different musicians with very different styles and genres. Both are top of their field. This poll should have had a third option "Equally great in their own right". But since as you say with a somewhat indignant tone "CHOOSE!" I will.

I DL'd Crossings, one of his few, few albums with even a few tracks not locked on Napster, others were parts of Monster and Perfect Machine. Crossings is pretty good but I've only given it one "spin." Didn't hear any Emerson like theatrics though.

One prob I have with Emerson is all his stuff sounds the same in a way.... like he's hitting all the keys at once or something... he stands out, but not in the same amazing way as say, Moon or Entwistle or Gilmour or Hendrix with their respective instruments.

Wakeman sounds just silly all the time.... bottle-blowing noises and what not....

I DL'd Crossings, one of his few, few albums with even a few tracks not locked on Napster, others were parts of Monster and Perfect Machine. Crossings is pretty good but I've only given it one "spin." Didn't hear any Emerson like theatrics though.

One prob I have with Emerson is all his stuff sounds the same in a way.... like he's hitting all the keys at once or something... he stands out, but not in the same amazing way as say, Moon or Entwistle or Gilmour or Hendrix with their respective instruments.

Wakeman sounds just silly all the time.... bottle-blowing noises and what not....

I'd go for Tony Banks as the definite best to me... methinks

Emerson and Hancock's styles are very different of course.

Good, and you can check out Sextant on youtube. I love his earlier albums too, and a couple of later ones. I'm not so keen on his Head Hunters album, though that was a much talked about one when his admission to PA was suggested.

Since you've heard Crossings, it's neat to compare the Maupin-penned versions of "Quasar" and "Water Torture" off Crossings and Maupin's later (1977) Slow Traffic to the Right (I love those too -- such good funk, and more accessible):

Interestingly, I had written this as a Hancock versus Banks poll, but changed it just before posting.

If you like Crossings (and Sextant when you hear it -- see youtube), there are many excellent related albums by performers on it (the Mwandishi Players) -- my particular faves being Julain Priester's Love, Love aand Eddie Henderson's Realization.

Excuse me if I -re-post something I wrote in my Henderson - Realization review:

"[Realization] is an absolutely essential album for those who like Herbie Hancock and friends Mwandishi
trilogy. Aside from "Crossings", "Sextant", and "Mwandishi", albums with a musical relation to
"Realization" worth getting include: Eddie Henderson's "Inside Out" (if you don't have Anthology, Vol. II) and "Sunburst"; Julian Priester's fantastic "Love, Love" and his "Polarization"; Bennie Maupin's "The Jewel in the Lotus" and "Slow Traffic to the Right"; Buster Williams Pinnacle;
and Norman Connors - "Dance of Magic" and "Dark of Light".

Lenny White, who performed on Realization, released to my mind one of the most stunning Fusion tracks
with "Venusian Summer"... Billy Hart's "Enchance is good",
and, though different, Pat Gleeson's electronic explorations in "Beyond the Sun" are very good."

I can't vote. We're here on PA; the automatic vote would be for Emerson. But Herbie has his own magic, which I've been fortunate enough to witness live from literally his feet. In the end, the two are both too skilled in their own way to compare, or especially to judge against the other. Sextant? Tarkus? I don't really want to choose one over the other.

Can you tell me where we're headin'?
Lincoln County Road or Armageddon.

Considering we're on a Prog forum the results are interesting. I would have expected Emerson crushing Herbie.

I would expect many not to vote who like Emerson, though, because they're not really familiar with Hancock. I know I wouldn't vote in such a poll unless I felt that I was sufficiently familiar with both to make a choice.

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